


The Moon is All We'll See

by Sectanza



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Au Ra Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Banter, F/M, Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers, Hurt/Comfort, One Shot, Pre-Canon, Secret Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 19:28:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29441175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sectanza/pseuds/Sectanza
Summary: Tesleen, primary caretaker at the Inn at Journey's Head, greets her friend as he returns from a morning patrol, and they enjoy a moment of playful conversation--at least, until the reality of her present life hits her, and things take a sad turn.
Relationships: Warrior of Light/Tesleen
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	The Moon is All We'll See

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little comfort fic because this is one of those ships that I got very unexpectedly in my feelings about and had to write,  
> I started it ages ago but didn't finish it until today so I guess it counts as a Valentine's Day piece??? Yeah why not
> 
> ~ Title is a lyric from Everything's Alright by Laura Shigihara

She found herself mesmerized by the sound of the bubbling pot. It was comforting, the way it drowned out the noise of the lifeless wind from the wasteland past the rocky walls, sweeping loose sand into the settlement and onto its equally lifeless residents. Tesleen loved those residents--wouldn’t trade them for the world, or at least what remained of it--but sometimes it was nice to escape the melancholy inherent to the life she’d stumbled into.  
As if on queue, something else came in to tear her from her thoughts: familiar heavy footfalls plodding into the ground nearby. _Khaishan_ , she immediately recognized. Not many others she knew that took so little care in their steps--not ones that could so easily bring themselves to walk at all, anyways.  
He always shook the sand from his clothes and hair like some sort of feral beast, and today was no different--though today did bring the added treat of his tail thumping against the ground and scattering red dust, startling him into sharply turning a couple of times to find the imaginary culprit. _Like one of those stumpy lizards not far from the encampment,_ she thought to herself with a little smile, _hostile and a bit scary at first, but the longer you look, the more cute and befuddled they seem._  
She’d since returned to stirring the broth broiling over the little campfire when the Drahn caught sight of her and gleefully made his way over, pausing to hunch over the woman to get a peek into the cauldron. There he stood for a solid minute before Tesleen finally gave in and acknowledged him, giving a few little cackles as she lightly slapped him on the stomach with the back of her free hand. “Rude! Use your _words,_ mister,” she playfully chided, then gestured to a nearby table, “you can just ask me what I’m making rather than looming over me like a monster from my childhood closet.”  
The biggest, dumbest grin stretched across Khaishan’s face in that instant, and Tesleen couldn’t help scoffing at it while he moved to take a seat. “Alright, then. What are you making?”  
“Stew.”  
Given the ensuing long silence, she found it safe to assume that wasn’t quite the answer he was looking for; though she didn’t look back, she could feel him staring at her expectantly. Of course, at the same time, she knew it wasn’t hostile--no way he wasn’t still wearing that dorky smile.  
“Ah, I do love a nondescript mystery stew,” he crowed, confirming her suspicions, and let out a few laughs. “What’s in it, Tesleen?”  
“You decided to be nosy, so you get to find that out for yourself, prickly pear!” She lifted the wooden spoon and clicked it against the lip of the pot a few times, then set it down in favor of a bowl and ladle, scooping a helping in before moving to the table. “You seem quite keen to put those investigative skills to the test, so here’s your chance! What do you think is in it?”  
Given the bemused look on his face, it seemed safe to say he was caught off guard, but he took the bowl regardless--and as, in so doing, his hands touched hers, Tesleen was reminded just how large he was. _Nearly a week since he's been here, and I'm still not used to it. I don't remember Drahn getting so tall._  
As he stared down into the bowl and began poking around at the contents with a spoon, Khaishan began stuttering and stumbling over his words. “Well--um--popotoes, for one,” he started, “and… err…”  
Tesleen watched his attempts to sort out his thoughts with great interest, and it didn’t take much for her to start cackling. “I thought you said you were a culinarian!”  
“I am! I-I’m just a little off kilter, that’s all!” he stammered out with a few laughs of his own, clearly avoiding looking up at her as he continued stirring and cluttering: trying to hide the rampant blush on his face, no doubt. “Well--the, er--the broth is red, so I’m guessing it’s tomato-based...?”  
“You’re two for two so far.”  
“Oh, thank the dawn!”  
A strange saying in such a climate, no doubt, but Tesleen never questioned it; in the short time she’d spent with the two thus far, she knew Khaishan and Alisaie both to be bizarre and confused individuals. She found it rather endearing, really.  
“Tell me, Tesleen,” he started again after a moment of giggling, “do you frequently make a game of guessing stew ingredients, or is this some form of cruel punishment made just for me?”  
… Endearing up until that, at least. He didn't know any better, but somehow, that didn't make it hurt any less. _Cruel punishment?_  
"I--I do, actually. It's about the most fun you can have in a place like this, at least without putting yourself in danger."  
She caught a brief glimpse of the look of sheer terror that crossed his face before she'd turned fully away to pick up the wooden spoon and begin absent-mindedly stirring the pot again.  
"Tesleen, I…"  
"Sometimes, I think about what life was like before the Flood. People back then must have been so much happier," she quietly mused. "I can't imagine it, though. I can hardly even imagine what my own life was like before I came here with mum. How long has it been, now…?"  
A dreadful silence hung in the air, both parties filled with tangible regret over their words. So it remained for a long couple of minutes before the Drahn tentatively spoke again.  
"Do you remember where you grew up?"  
"It was… Kholusia. Wright, I think."  
"And you came from there to here, when your mother, um… fell ill?"  
"Aye."  
"Have you ever been anywhere else?"  
" … No. No, I haven't."  
There was another long pause, but the silence was somehow kinder this time, more bittersweet, in a way.  
"Il Mheg is a beautiful place," he finally offered. "The pixies have taken a liking to me. I imagine they wouldn't mind me bringing a plus one."  
She simply shook her head and set the spoon back down. "I can't well abandon the Inn for a self-indulgent outing, Khaishan. I'm one of the only caretakers that knows how to use a blade, and Alisaie's worked herself half to death as is." Tesleen turned, then held up a finger as he opened his mouth to object, giving a shake of her head. "I appreciate the offer, really. I do. But as long as there are sin eaters, there will be patients here, and I will not turn my back on them--not even for a moment."  
There was this look of utter defeat about him that she hated to see--at least initially. Soon enough it was replaced by a look of contemplation, and she could swear she heard the gears churning in his head.  
“Then I’ll get rid of the sin eaters.”  
They locked eyes in that instant, and a bizarre tension hung in the air between them. Even if she couldn’t quite discern the emotion, one thing was certain: he spoke those words with dead certainty.  
“How noble of you,” she croaked as she folded her arms, turning her gaze to the sand underneath her feet. Hindsight hit quickly, and she realized she was perhaps more sarcastic than she should have been--but a strange feeling of sadness and anger still loomed over her. _To say such a thing so simply..._  
He stood, then, and slowly--carefully--stepped towards her, then reached out, gently taking her hands into his. “I know it sounds stupid, and I’ve no clue how I would go about it, but I promise you, I _will_ do it,” he spoke, his voice nearly at a whisper, and ever so slightly tightened his grip. “If I have to go beyond the Flood into that empty expanse and slay every last eater myself, then I will. If I have to lay down my life to bring an end to this cycle, then I will. I’ll do it, and... and if it doesn’t end up being the instant solution I hope it is, then we’ll figure out what we can do for the Inn’s residents, aye? And then, when everything is said and done...”  
While he spoke, she’d stared down at their hands, caught off guard and still trying to figure out how to feel--but as he brought her hands together and softly cupped them in his own, she finally tilted her head up, and as they stared each other in the eyes, a smile made its way onto his face.  
“... I’ll take you around Norvrandt, so you can see the moon from every angle. Whatever it takes to make you happy, Tesleen, I _promise_ you that I’ll do it. It’s what you deserve.”  
For a quiet few seconds, they just stood there, lost in the moment. She could feel tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. Tesleen wasn’t used to this--she wasn’t used to any of this. She wasn’t used to being stared at for so long, or being so close, or being held like this, or being told so genuinely that she deserved happiness--that she deserved the night sky. In the end, she shut her eyes and leaned her head forwards, lightly pressing her forehead against his thumbs as she choked back her tears.  
“You make a very lofty promise.”  
“I do. But it’s one that I intend to keep.”  
She took a breath. “... Very well. I’ll hold you to it, Khaishan,” she murmured, then raised her head once more, eventually giving a little nod towards the table he’d left. “But, before you start racking your brain over how you’re going to end a century-long drought, you should know your stew’s getting cold. Can’t think on an empty stomach, eh?”  
He seemed confused for a second, but realization set in soon enough, and he took in a sharp gasp before letting go of her hands and darting off to his former spot. Somehow, though, he looked more nervous than she would have expected a man that simply forgot his breakfast would.  
“Aye, aye! I imagine you have some other business to attend to, yes? I--uh--I’ll be here, in the meantime,” he stammered as he took his seat and quickly picked his spoon back up. “Good luck! Er--good day! I hope you have a good day, that is. I’ll be right over here.”  
Tesleen couldn’t help raising a brow and giggling at that, but she answered with a smile and a nod anyways before she turned to take stock for the day. As she did so, however, she had a realization of her own, and brought a hand to her heart.

_The Warrior of Darkness... maybe he’s been right under my nose for a little while yet._


End file.
